


Correcting Mistakes

by Emer_Rose



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-20
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2019-04-25 23:28:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14389350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emer_Rose/pseuds/Emer_Rose
Summary: Alice is sick of pretending everything is okay and when she and Hal have a long overdue argument she takes her first step towards fixing her mistakes.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I intended for this to be a Falice one shot but then I got carried away with dealing with Alice and Hal’s marriage so unfortunately there’s not as much Falice as I would have liked in it. I’ll try and post a follow up chapter soon with more Falice interaction! Hope you enjoy!

Alice placed breakfast on the table just like she had done practically every morning for the last twenty years. In so many ways everything was the same as it once was - same place, same food, nearly all the same people - however in reality everything had changed.

Polly had packed up and left for good weeks ago and now Alice had forced Chic to do the same. Hal and Betty were chatting amiable about nothing and it was all Alice could do to avoid burying her head in her hands.

How could she have let it come back to this? Hal sitting in his old seat as though he had never left and Betty trying her best to keep the peace.

It didn’t help that she had barely slept at all last night. Not only were the memories of discovering Midge still haunting her but it also felt strange having Hal sharing a bed with her again. There hadn’t been any discussion about it, he had just simply moved right back in and carried on as before.

This was made extremely uncomfortable by the fact that every time Alice somehow managed to drift off, she was bombarded with dreams of a certain Serpent who apparently wanted nothing to do with her anymore. 

She relived the day she had spent with Fp repeatedly while she slept and spent every waking moment trying to push the thoughts away.

She practically felt his secure arms around her and the way he dropped kisses to her hair and traced gentle patterns on her back when he thought she was sleeping. Then when she woke to find her husband’s back facing her from the other side of the bed, she felt nearly sick.

Partly with disappointment and partly with guilt. Sure he had been seeing Penelope Blossom only a few weeks before but this was different.

Alice couldn’t imagine Hal really loving Penelope and he certainly wasn’t dreaming of her when in bed with his wife. Then again she couldn’t imagine Hal ever dreaming of her either.

“Isn’t that right mom?” Betty asked innocently from the other end of the table, drawing Alice back to the room.

“Sorry?”

“She said you had made your peace with that Southside Gang her boyfriend is a member of”, Hal repeated accusingly.

“So what if I have?” Alice Said dismissively. The thought of arguing with Hal about this drained her and so she sipped her coffee as if to signal she was finished talking about the matter.

“Betty are you leaving for school? I think your mother and I need to have a conversation”, Hal said, eyes never leaving Alice.

Betty’s gaze darted between the two of them quizzically, gauging whether or not she wanted to leave them to it.

Alice sighed and stood up to kiss Betty’s cheek.  
“Have a good day at school honey”, she said and inwardly delighted in the fact that her daughter hadn’t pulled away.

“I’ll see you later mom”, Betty smiled grabbing her bag on the way out the door. Alice bit back a smirk when she noticed her daughter had avoided her father’s outstretched arm but felt immediately bad for it. He was her husband after all and she had been the one to let him back.

“What the hell Alice?” Hal turned to her immediately after the front door shut,” You’re suddenly completely fine with this whole Serpent nonsense?!”

“I think I have the right to be proud of where I came from if I wish to be”, Alice responded, starting to gather the dishes.

“You’ve never once been proud of it before, in fact I can quote countless articles in which you explained exactly why you weren’t proud of it”.

“Well I suppose things have changed”, she said coolly. She really didn’t want to get into this argument with him. There was no way she could tell him the truth about her reason for her beginning to accept her past again. No matter how much she said she wanted no more lies, he had never understood the Southside part of her and he never would.

Hal shook his head in disbelief and seemed to be lost for words.

“Look, I've been through quite a bit since you left and I’ve come to the realisation that I haven’t exactly been fair to the Southside. It may hold bad memories but it also holds amazing ones. It’s not a huge deal and it’s not something you’re going to change my mind about” Alice tried to speak calmly and honestly.

“Been through quite a bit”, Hal scoffed but stopped when Alice narrowed her eyes dangerously.

“Fine, whatever. Let’s just ignore the fact that you went through hell while you were part of that gang”, Hal said angrily.

“Well I’ll be honest, living in this house hasn’t been a piece of cake either”, Alice retorted feeling silly for wanting to hit out at him in any ways he could. She knew it was unfair but she was just so damn tired.

“And what exactly is that supposed to mean?” thankfully Hal sounded angry rather than hurt. That had been her intention.

“Exactly what it sounds like. Maybe I went through some terrible situations as a teenager but at least I had people back then who I could trust”.

“You could trust?” Hal parroted incredulously, face reddening with frustration,” You could trust gang members and drunks and dealers?”

“I still trust them more than I ever trusted you”, Alice hissed.

Hal’s face darkened thunderously and his mouth opened and closed as if trying to form words. 

“Fuck you Alice”, he eventually bit out and snatched his keys and slammed the front door behind him.

Alice set down the last plate by the sink with a sigh, feeling a little bad for the way she had handled the situation. She hadn’t been the most mature.

She set about doing the dishes distractedly, not really focusing on anything in particular before eventually giving up and retrieving her phone. There was no point in letting it fester, she needed to talk to Hal. It was more than unfair on the both of them to keep fighting and ignoring their problems that had been staring at them for years now. As hard as it was to admit, they had fallen out of love somewhere along the way and recently things had only been deteriorating. She couldn’t pretend everything was perfect anymore just to stave off loneliness. Truth be told, she was lonelier with him than without him.

The phone rang out four times before the voice of Penelope Blossom drilled into Alice’s ears. Alice hung up immediately and couldn’t help but laugh darkly. 

There she was, feeling guilty for missing Fp and hitting out at Hal while Hal himself had immediately ran off to Penelope. Of course he had.

The weirdest thing was that out of all the swirling emotions she was feeling at that moment, the most prominent one was relief. Sure she was angry and there was no denying that the sound of  
Penelope’s voice stung a little after Hal’s pleas to be let back into her life but the realisation that she wasn’t the only one who wanted to be in somebody else’s arms was comforting. Although Hal actually had somebody who wanted him too, that stung a little also.

Alice shook her head to clear it and stepped back into the kitchen. What now? That question filled the empty space around her and made her realise that that was it. She really was alone now.

Once Betty was old enough, she’d leave immediately and that would be the end of any family Alice ever had.

That though brought unbidden tears to Alice’s eyes that were hastily wiped away. There was no use crying now, she scolded herself, she had already made her mistakes and now she was going to have to live with them.

Alice absentmindedly unlocked her phone and scrolled through her contacts until she reached Fp’s name. She stopped herself from dialling just on time and was shocked at herself. What I’m the world would make her think calling him would be a good idea right now?

The truth was, his was the only voice she wanted to, scratch that, needed to hear right now, even if he only told her to get lost. With that thought in mind she gathered her coat and for the umpteenth time, set off for Pop’s with the goal of seeing him.

Though if you had had asked her, she never would have admitted as much.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alice makes her way to Pop’s to have a long overdue discussion with Fp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This went a completely different direction than I intended but I said I would update so I have! Hope you all like it x

As Alice pulled up outside Pop's, her heart pounded uncomfortably in her chest. She couldn't decide what on earth she even wanted to say to Fp and her courage she had had when she left her house was rapidly diminishing.

Deciding to bite the bullet, she steeled herself and made her way into the dimly lit diner. The walk from the door to the counter seemed everlasting and when she finally set eyes on Fp she strongly considered turning around and leaving. 

He looked surprised to see her and when she met his eyes it stung her to see him building walls, distancing himself from her just like he had before. It took her right back to that vulnerable place she had spent all her adult life trying to avoid.

"What can I get you Mrs Cooper?" Fp said with a touch of ice in his voice.

Alice froze then, coherent sentences just wouldn't form in her mind. Only he had ever had that effect on her.

"Coffee please", she eventually mumbled out, embarrassed by how shaken she was. She'd only been up two hours and already this day had reduced her to an emotional wreck.

This really had been an awful idea. As much as Alice hated it, she felt a slight lump in her throat and recognised that she needed to get out of there before she actually began crying.

It was too similar to before. The way he just assumed she was better off with Hal, the way he pretended he almost didn't know her just so she would leave, the way she wasn't sure if he genuinely wanted her to go or was just trying to protect her in his own roundabout way.

That not knowing had hurt the most back then just like it was killing her now. Had it ever really meant anything? Either way the rejection stung bitterly. 

"Is everything okay?" Fp's voice sounded concerned now rather than bitter as he pushed the cup of coffee over the counter gently. He left his hand beside the cup, almost as though reaching out to her. He always had a knack for knowing when something was wrong where Alice was concerned.

"Yes", Alice choked out, cursing herself for how small her voice sounded. Thank goodness for the fact the diner was empty other than for her and Fp. 

She looked up to meet his eyes then and couldn't take how gentle his demeanour had become.

"Actually no", she felt the first tear fall," no I'm really not". She shook her head then and curled up into herself a little, she knew she'd probably regret this later but she couldn't bring herself to care anymore. 

She let herself sob silently, vaguely noticing the sound of Fp leaving his post behind the counter and approaching her.

At first his hand on her shoulder seemed hesitant but the moment Alice grabbed it, she was enveloped completely by his arms. 

She buried her head in his shoulder and let him gently rock her back and forth to comfort her. For that one moment, everything just seemed a little better. Right then he was holding her together when almost everything else was falling apart. Right then she realised that she had never been fair to this incredible man and keeping secrets from him was something she just couldn't do anymore.

She felt herself calming rapidly and she dabbed at her eyes gently, trying to compose herself enough to get out the words she needed to say.

She pulled back enough to look him in the eyes. She sniffled once and was both grateful for and upset by the thumb he brushed across her cheek to gently sweep off a single stray tear. Such a sweet gesture was too much when he was going to hate her after what she had to say.

"I needed to talk to you now", she admitted with a deep breath before continuing ," I'm sick of running in circles and repeating all the mistakes I made when I was younger. I need you to know that I'm finished with that. I'm not lying to myself anymore and I'm not going to lie to you. All cards out on the table for once, just like I should have done in the first place".

That speech alone had been hell to deliver and she was far from the worst of it. He stayed quiet though, a fact she was grateful for. He nodded and swallowed nervously as if to urge her to continue. A small part of her suspected he knew what she was about to admit before she even spoke. This conversation was way too long overdue.

"Fp, that child I had in high school ... he wasn't Hal's". There it was. That once sentence changed everything and there was no way of retracting it now. 

It hadn't at all been what she had come here to say but now that she had said it, she knew it was the only place for her to go. If she was going to attempt to fix her mistakes and rebuild her relationships, she needed to be honest about them first. It was up to him whether or not to forgive her.

Fp's hand recoiled from Alice's face suddenly and she could see him processing the information slowly.

"He's mine", Fp finished stunned.  
He turned and paced over and back a few times trying to gather his thoughts and control his initial anger.

"How could you not tell me this?" his voice cracked, betraying how hurt he truly was," Why would you not tell me?"

"I was all alone back then, when I found out I was already with Hal and you refused to even look at me. There was no way I could give that child a proper life by myself and there was absolutely no way the Coopers were going to take them in", Alice felt the words tumbling out finally after all her years of keeping them locked away," Even if I had told you, which admittedly I should have done, there was no way anything could have been different. We couldn't have raised a child, hell we could barely even take care of ourselves. I tried to make the best decision I could and believe me it has haunted me every day since".

By this point both Alice and Fp were fighting back tears.

"God Ally, I would have been there for you", Fp eventually choked out," You know I would have been there for you right? You should have told me".

“You’re right, I should have told you. I just couldn’t bring myself to and I’m so so sorry”, Alice’s voice barely slipped through her tight throat and her eyes stung.

She didn’t know what she expected him to do or say. The thoughts of him refusing to look at her or shouting at her angrily definitely crossed her mind. What she didn’t expect was his arms wrapping around her again. Crying with her, grieving with her for what they never had the chance to have and most importantly not pushing her away.

She had just revealed the biggest secret she had ever kept from him and he was still there holding her. 

“So we have a son”, Fp whispered into her hair, still not quite able to wrap his head around it.

Alice nodded against him, sniffling quietly,” Indeed we do”.

“What the hell are we meant to do now?”

Fp’s question hung in the air a few moments. Neither one of them had an answer to it. 

Fp sighed again and pulled away slightly,” Have you told Hal?”

“He knows”, Alice nodded, realising suddenly that Fp was jealous. The way he almost spat Hal’s name proved it.

“He’s at Thistle House with Penelope right now”, Alice admitted causing Fp to furrow his brow in confusion.

“I thought you two were back together?” he eventually said.

“I didn’t think you’d mind”, Alice tried but couldn’t even find the heart to make herself sound angry. She more than understood why he’d been nervous to rekindle their relationship,” Actually that’s a lie, I guess I just needed somebody and he arrived begging with flowers at just the right time. Or wrong time as it turns out”.

“So he’s gone for good?” Fp sounded hopeful and it pulled at Alice’s heart to hear it.

Alice looked up at him and nodded, barely hiding her smile at how relieved he looked. How could she ever have believed he didn’t care?

“I’m sorry”, Fp whispered and Alice wasn’t quite sure what he was sorry for. It didn’t really matter to her whether he was politely consoling her for the loss of her marriage or admitting he was sorry for pushing her away. Right now all that mattered was everything that couldn’t be conveyed with words. The way he was looking at her told her all she needed to know.

She leaned up questioningly, slowly inching towards his lips without breaking eye contact for a second. 

“Don’t be sorry”, she breathed barely an inch from his face.

His hands made their way to cup her face and he met her lips gently.

It was soft and loving and everything they needed it to be in that moment. His lips against hers were healing and perfect.

Maybe they both had quite a way to go still in correcting their mistakes and goodness knows they had many amendments still to make but right then they had both made massive leaps towards where they wanted to go. And if their lives had led them to that perfect moment where they found their way back to each other at last, Alice couldn’t help but feel that all of it had been worth it.


End file.
